Bad Press
by anothersobriquet
Summary: Six years later, Mokuba has "matured" into a partying womanizer, which has been tarnishing the Kaiba name. In a flimsy attempt to keep him in line, Seto drags him to New York on a business trip. While there, Seto comes face-to-face with his past...and is strangely intrigued by how much things have changed.
1. Chapter 1

He pinched the edge of the collar of the cleanly pressed dress shirt sitting in his luggage, smoothing out a slight crease in the fabric. His lips thinned into a straight line as he continued to sift through his belongings. Everything was neatly organized into his medium-sized roller bag: clothes, toiletries...and his laptop and card deck were packed into his briefcase. He was a minimalist when it came to traveling, never packing a shirt or toothbrush more than he needed.

He zipped up his bag and hauled it from his bed to the floor, extending the handle and rolling it back and forth just once to check the wheels. He then dipped a hand into his pocket and pulled out his phone, squinting at the screen for the time. Just a little over two hours until the flight. Perfect.

After briefly checking his room to see if he missed anything, he grabbed his briefcase, quietly exited, and made his way down the grand staircase towards the foyer. He quirked an eyebrow when he noticed he was the only Kaiba brother here. Rolling his eyes, he made a half-turn and glared at the staircase. Just as he was about to open his mouth, the sound of a slamming door interrupted him. Sure enough, a tall figure came barreling down the stairs. His own roller bag thumped against every marble step.

"I already said I was sorry!" Mokuba was busy babbling on his cell phone; he shouldered his backpack and adjusted the handle on his roller bag. "Hey, hey - I know...I promise I'll make it up to you. My brother and I eat there all the time; I'm sure I'll be able to snag another reservation as soon as I get back. This trip was kind of unplanned..." The younger Kaiba used his free hand to brush back his dark hair, removing the strands from his line of vision. Thank the gods he cut it when he started high school. "You know how businesses go. Stuff just springs up out of nowhere-" He paused for a moment to chuckle, completely unaware of the lone spectator watching him from a few feet away with a twitching brow. "-Of course! I'll be looking forward to it. I'll let you know about that reservation as soon as I can, okay? Alright, later!"

"Are you finished?" The older Kaiba's arms were impatiently crossed over his chest.

"Sorry you had to hear that." Mokuba grinned sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head. "It's not my fault _someone _decided to make an impromptu business trip to New York three days ago." The boy shoved his phone into his jeans and rolled his luggage towards the front doors. "So, why do I have to come with you again?"

"Oh, I don't know," Seto rolled his eyes as he began to follow his brother out of the manor, "Because you're the company's vice president and only heir?"

Mokuba snorted as he descended the front steps. The limo was already parked and ready to go. "You make it sound as if you're about to keel over and die any day now. You're twenty-two, nii-san, not _eighty-_two."

Seto handed his luggage to the driver before crawling into the back seat. "Shut up." He promptly buckled his seatbelt and crossed his arms again. "You're also my younger brother, in case you've forgotten."

"I'm seventeen, bro," Mokuba laughed as he took the seat next to him. "I don't need you babysitting me anymore." The engine revved, and in a few moments they were moving.

"Tch," Seto scoffed. "Tell that to the press." He gritted his teeth when he caught Mokuba rolling his eyes. "You know exactly what I'm talking about. You need to stop playing around, Mokuba - you may be young but you still have a reputation to keep up, and-"

"Hey, I know what I'm doing," Mokuba interjected, "and I don't need you telling me what to do. You know how the tabloids love making up stories about people. They just want something to talk about, that's all."

"And you're giving them something to talk about with your behaviour." Seto hissed. "I'm trying to run a company here, and it's difficult to do that when said company's vice president is too busy running around chasing skirts. You've got to grow up."

"Grow up?" The younger brother shook his head. "Look, bro, no offence or anything but I'm trying to live my life the way _I_ want to before I let all the boring company stuff get to me. Contrary to popular belief, there's more to life than working all the time. I wanna have some fun first."

_"This_ is your idea of fun?" Seto reached for his phone and pulled up the Internet browser. He quickly typed Mokuba's name into the search bar, and when the results came up he immediately read the first link. _"Domino City's Very Own Bruce Wayne: Mokuba Kaiba was seen yet again with two girls on each arm last Friday night, walking out of the city's hottest sushi restaurant-"_

"Bruce Wayne?" Mokuba's eyes were wide with an almost childlike awe, which only made Seto's blood boil even faster. "So they're calling me Batman now? Way cool."

"You're missing the point." Seto grumbled before putting away his phone. "I'm taking you to New York because I need to keep an eye on you, and for your information this wasn't exactly unplanned. The both of us were invited to a charity gala next weekend. I figured we could fly in early so we can get some work out of the way."

Mokuba sniggered, which prompted Seto to narrow his eyes. "You really think you can keep an eye on me, big brother? Fine, I accept your challenge." He yawned and placed both hands behind his head. "New York's a big place, you know. Lots of new people to meet."

"Don't get any ideas."

"What makes you think I haven't done anything before?"

_"Mokuba!"_


	2. Chapter 2

The flight was an agonizing thirteen hours and fifty minutes. No wonder Seto only traveled here when he really needed to.

The elder Kaiba emerged from the airport with wrinkled clothes, rumpled hair, and dark half-circles under his eyes. He reached for his phone to check the time; it was just about eight in the morning.

"Ugh..." He lifted his head and almost sighed with relief when he spotted his driver and the car. He just wanted to get to a bed.

Mokuba, on the other hand, was wide-eyed and full of energy. The teen practically leapt from the plane when they landed, startling nearly everyone in first class. Out of all the cities they traveled to for business, New York was his favourite. He even mentioned wanting to study here after graduating high school - as if he really needed further education (Mokuba argued that he just wanted the "college experience", which translated to "I want to party and meet cute girls").

"Where to?" He threw an arm around his older brother's slumped shoulders. "There's so much to see!"

"We've been here a million times," Seto grumbled as he shuffled towards the car, "I don't know why you act like such a tourist every time we come here."

"Because New York's never the same city every day!" Mokuba tugged Seto into the car. "Let's go to Times Square!"

"No. We're going to the penthouse." Seto gave the driver a curt nod, and within seconds the car was moving. Even at eight in the morning New York City was already bustling with life: impatient office employees were waiting anxiously by the street corners, waiting for the lights to change so they could get to their jobs. Street vendors selling food and counterfeit designer bags were hollering at the tourists wandering the sidewalks. Car horns and loud music pelted Seto's eardrums, and he cursed the city inwardly as he pressed the side of his head against the car's tinted window. He wanted - no, _needed_ a nap.

"You wanted to come here early, and now all you want to do is go to the penthouse? What kind of vacation is this?" Mokuba's voice caused the older Kaiba's eyes to snap open.

"We're not on vacation. We're on a business trip."

"But we came here a week early, which means it's sort of like a vacation...ergo, I'm going to take a look around." Mokuba scrambled forward and reached over the driver's seat to tap the driver on the shoulder. "Hey, d'ya mind dropping me off someplace real quick on the way to the penthouse? No need to pick me up or anything; I'll find my way back."

At this point Seto was too tired and irritated to argue. The car veered around the corner and parked by the curb side.

"See ya later, big brother." Mokuba gave him a cheeky wink and a triumphant laugh before slamming the car door shut. "Looks like this challenge was over before it even started!"

Seto didn't have the energy to cuss him off, and even if he did he was too late; by the time he raised his head to glare at his brother one last time Mokuba had already taken off down the street somewhere - probably to find a mall or a cafe...or any other place where a lot of women his age would be congregating. The young CEO hunched over and pinched the bridge of his nose. He knew he was in for a trip when Mokuba entered his teens, but he didn't expect anything like this. He figured he was doing the right thing by giving his brother the childhood he never had. Was this a divine punishment of some sort, and if it was...what was he being punished for? Seto did the best he could with what he had to raise his younger brother. Apparently that wasn't good enough.

"Sir, we have arrived."

_Finally._ He sluggishly tore himself from the back seat of the car and stumbled into the valet entrance of the towering apartment building, shielding his eyes from the glowering morning sunlight. Jet lag was punching him in the gut right now, and he needed to get to a bed pronto.

The elevator ride up was only a few seconds long. Fifty-four floors later, Seto Kaiba had arrived at his penthouse estate in the Upper East Side of New York City. He was here more often than all of the other cities he did business in, so buying a place of residence seemed pertinent.

The first thing he did was straggle into his room. He unceremoniously tossed his briefcase aside and collapsed face first on his bed, falling asleep immediately. He was in for a long week.

* * *

><p>"Seto?"<p>

"Ungh..."

"Hey, bro. Wake up." There was a soft nudge on his shoulder. "Nii-san, wake up, man. You've been out cold for hours. Get up."

The elder Kaiba lazily opened his eyes and rolled on his back, gazing blearily at a blurry outline of his younger brother standing over him. He could vaguely make out the wayward tendrils of black hair.

"Gods, Mokuba...I'm so glad you cut your hair...I was afraid I was going to lose you in that mane you were growing..." He let out a sluggish chuckle and rubbed his eyes.

"Have you gone nuts, or did being so high up in the air for the past day cut off the circulation to your brain? Seto!" Mokuba hollered, waving a hand in front of his brother's face. "Do you even know what time it is?"

At the mention of the time, Seto's eyes shot to the digital clock on his nightstand. It read quarter to five in the evening. Was he out for _that_ long? Damned jet lag...

"What time did you get back?" He forced himself awake and rose to his feet, heading over to the bathroom to splash cold water on his face. He gazed into the mirror and frowned at the tired young man staring back at him. He hated traveling so much.

"About an hour ago." He heard Mokuba's voice go suspiciously low from his bedroom. "Hey, um...big brother?"

He knew where this was heading. "What is it, Mokuba?" He slowly turned towards the bathroom door and found his younger brother leaning against the doorframe with something in his hand. He squinted at it - at first he thought they were Duel Monsters cards, but he realized that they were too long and narrow in shape.

"Are those-"

"Tickets to the New York City Ballet? Why yes, yes they are! You're great at these guessing games." Mokuba chortled nervously. He only made that noise when he knew he was going to be in trouble, and boy...was he right.

"How in the world did you get those?" Seto marched over to him and snatched the tickets from his hand, quickly skimming them over. "They're for...tonight...at eight? Since when were you ever interested in _ballet,_ and why are you trying to get _me_ to go with you?"

"I didn't even ask if you-"

Seto threw a chilling glare, which immediately shut Mokuba up. "If you didn't want me to go, you wouldn't be here, would you?"

"Okay, okay," Mokuba held up his hands in defeat, "I got these tickets off a girl I was hanging out with earlier. Bumped into her while wandering around the city. She's cute, and she's from Russia! Kinda awkward and a little too pale for my liking, but-"

"Get to the point, Mokuba."

_"Anyways,_ she told me she was a dancer for the New York City Ballet! Cool, huh? Aren't they, like, known worldwide or something? B-but yeah, uh, they have a sold out show tonight, and she had extra tickets 'cause her parents had to cancel on her last minute or something...I dunno, I wasn't really paying attention to her at this point because-"

_"Mokuba."_

"Okay, okay! She basically asked if I could come, and being the nice guy that I am...I said yes. Happy?" The younger Kaiba plucked the tickets from his brother's hands and waved them around. "We're going, and that's final."

"You couldn't find another floozy to go with you?" Seto grunted as he gently pushed past Mokuba to return to his bedroom. He made his way towards his walk-in closet, where he had a full arsenal of suits, shirts, ties, and shoes. He may not be in New York all the time, but whenever he was he was usually here on business, which meant he had to have a closet full of business attire.

"Floozy? Aw, c'mon bro. You didn't mean that." Mokuba had followed him into his closet and was now absentmindedly fingering a sleeve of one of Seto's jackets. "She's a nice girl, and I'm sure the ballet will be interesting...kinda."

"Do you even know what show we're going to tonight?"

"Uh..."

Seto held up a royal blue tie in one hand and a forest green one in the other. "The tickets say it's for Romeo and Juliet, genius." He threw his brother a quick glance. "You better start getting ready. This is _your_ date, not mine."

"Fine, fine." Mokuba rolled his eyes and spun on his heel to leave. "It'll be fun, trust me."

Seto tossed both ties aside and grabbed a plain black one instead. "Whatever."


	3. Chapter 3

"Are you ready yet?"

"Just about."

"Again, this is _your_ date. I don't give a damn if we're late."

Seto glanced at himself in the mirror and made a last-minute adjustment to his tie. He decided to make it simple: black suit, black tie, black shoes, white shirt, and a silver tie clip to top everything off. He wasn't going to make a statement, anyway. Mokuba was lucky he had nothing to do until tomorrow.

"Okay, I'm done." Mokuba stepped into the foyer, adjusting the lapels of his jacket. His suit was a dark navy, his shirt white, his shoes black, and his tie a soft grey heather. He even managed to tame his hair with some pomade, showing off his gentleman-style haircut and side part. Seto had to give his brother credit; he could clean himself up when he had to.

"Oops, wait-" Mokuba disappeared inside his room again, only to reemerge seconds later with a matching grey heather pocket square sticking out of his breast pocket. "Okay, done for real now." He grinned and raised his arms, gesturing to himself. "Do I look like Bruce Wayne now?"

Seto rolled his eyes and unlocked the front door. "This better be worth my time, Mokuba."

The limo ride to the ballet wasn't long, though Mokuba insisted they stop at a florist on the way so he could pick out a nice bouquet for his lady friend. Seto groaned inwardly the entire way there, and continued to groan as Mokuba practically dragged him out of the car and towards The Lincoln Center's entrance. The other attendees were dressed up as well, most of them older than they were, and some of them Seto's colleagues in the business world. A few of them shot curious glances their way, probably wondering what the famous Kaiba Brothers were doing at a ballet. It definitely wasn't a Duel Monsters tournament.

"Everyone's staring." Mokuba grumbled through clenched teeth, as they went to find their seats.

"That's mostly _your_ fault, not mine." Seto hissed back. He resisted the urge to uncomfortably tug at his collar when he noticed an elderly couple whispering and pointing at his younger brother. _Great, just great._

Mokuba dropped a small booklet in his brother's lap. "Just in case you cared - I managed to nab an extra program for you on the way in. Thought it'd keep you occupied for a minute."

The elder Kaiba rolled his eyes. "You're so thoughtful."

The lights dimmed, and the audience quieted down. The music began to play, and the show unfolded before them. This wasn't the first time Seto had to watch something he wasn't particularly interested in; Gozaburo made him watch the occasional opera and ballet or two in his childhood in order to "instil culture" in him. Years of being forced through this got him to build up a resistance of the sort, and he was able to feign interest easily. He kept his back straight the entire time, his eyes trained on the stage. He saw it as a game of some sort: he would challenge himself to pay attention for the whole performance, and if he didn't he would lose. Being a naturally competitive person, it helped motivate him to stay alert. Mokuba, unfortunately, wasn't as resilient as he was and was already starting to nod off. Seto elbowed him in the ribs every once in awhile to keep him awake.

The music changed, and the lights changed colour. Everything was cast in deep blue; something sad was going to happen. The dancer playing Juliet was practically swimming on the stage, her movements fluid and graceful. There was no resistance to her movements; her limbs cut clean through the air as she danced and twirled to the music, her eyes closed and brow furrowed to mirror Juliet's sorrow.

"There she is!" Mokuba tugged on his brother's sleeve and jerked his chin towards the stage. The rest of the dancers were there now, swaying along to the music. "She's second to the right - blonde hair. Pretty, huh?"

"Shh!" An old lady sitting behind him rapped the younger Kaiba hard on the head with her rolled up program booklet. Mokuba shot the woman a glare before shutting up and returning to the play. Seto could only smirk and shake his head before glancing back towards the stage. The New York Ballet Company was renowned for a reason. He wasn't a ballet aficionado, but he knew a good dancer when he saw one.

_Wait..._

Seto's eyebrow raised slowly as he leaned slightly forward in his seat, trying to to get a better look at one of the dancers. There was something familiar about the one dancing to the far left.

He grabbed the program resting on his lap and flipped through the pages, stopping when he found the list of dancers in the corps de ballet. His eyes scanned the list, and he swore he felt his heart stop when he landed upon the all too familiar name.

_Mazaki..._

He rubbed his eyes, making sure he wasn't dreaming. He had to be. When he opened his eyes and found out she was _still_ dancing on the stage not too far away from him, he shook his head in disbelief. What was she doing here...?

The few hours seemed to fly by, and suddenly Seto found himself standing up and politely clapping his hands with the rest of the audience. Mokuba cheered obnoxiously, and even put his fingers to his mouth to let out a shrill whistle. The old lady sitting behind him wasn't very fond of that.

"Hey, do you think you can come with me for a second? I gotta give her these." Mokuba motioned to the flowers he was holding.

He didn't want to run the risk of bumping into _her,_ so he came up with a flimsy excuse. "I'm not going to interrupt your wooing, Casanova. I'll wait in the car." Seto gave his younger brother a pat on the shoulder before turning around to leave. There was a crowd, so it took him awhile to push himself out.

The air was brisk but refreshing, and it felt nice on his face after being stuck in that suffocating theatre for so long. He stuffed his hands in his pockets as he descended the illuminated stone steps, ready to retire for the night. He may have slept the whole day but the jet lag was still strong. It was probably going to take a good day or two before his internal clock was fixed.

He could eye the familiar black car in the distance, and he picked up the pace a little bit.

"Thank you! I'm so glad you liked it."

"You did? Really?"

"You're too kind. Thank you so much!"

He could recognize that singsong lilt anywhere, even if she was speaking English. He glanced around for a quick second and found her standing not too far away, speaking to what he presumed was a group of admirers. _Male_ admirers. He wondered why she didn't stay with the rest of the dancers. Didn't they usually have afterparties or something?

Her fan club dispersed, and she was left on her own. Her long black peacoat shielded her body from the autumn breeze, and her bangs were pinned back with a silver clip. Her arms were cradling a very bushy bouquet of roses. She turned towards the steps, and that's when he realized he was staring at her for too long.

Blue eyes met blue eyes, and both pairs widened in surprise.

"Kaiba...?" Her voice was slightly trembling with incredulity.

"Mazaki." Seto took a single step forward, his hands still in his pockets. He hoped his voice was at least a little more firm than hers. "It's been awhile."

"Likewise." Anzu switched back to Japanese. She eyed him up and down for a moment, and he suddenly felt self-conscious. "What are you doing here?"

"I can easily ask you the same question."

Her eyes narrowed, and he couldn't help but smirk. "You haven't changed-"

"Nii-san!" Mokuba's voice tore through the tense atmosphere, causing both adults to turn their heads. The younger Kaiba casually made his way over to them; the blonde Russian dancer was clinging to one arm, and a brunette was hanging off the other. A small group of other people, presumably other dancers, trailed closely behind. "I thought you already left." The teen's eyes traveled over to Anzu, and he slid his brother a sly grin. "Hey, who's this? She's pretty-"

He paused for a moment and took another glance at her. His expression instantly changed from smug to confused. Seconds later, his eyes lit up and he suddenly looked like he was eleven again.

"ANZU!" Mokuba practically wrenched away from the two girls (they didn't look very amused by this) and launched himself towards his old friend, enveloping her in a tight hug.

Anzu reciprocated his enthusiasm, laughing musically and patting her free hand against his back. "Mokuba! My goodness, you've grown! You have to be at least a foot taller than me now." She pulled back from the younger Kaiba's embrace and moved her hand to his shoulder, seemingly forgetting about Seto's presence. "You're all grown up. I almost didn't recognize you without that long hair."

Seto couldn't help but snort at her comment, and Mokuba threw him a quick dirty look before cheekily rubbing an index finger underneath his nose. "My brother doesn't seem to think so, but I'm glad you noticed!" He retreated to his new group of friends, who were animatedly chatting amongst themselves. "Say, we were gonna head out for a few hours...sorta like an afterparty for the awesome show you guys did tonight. Did you want to join us?"

Anzu giggled, but politely shook her head. "Thanks, but I'm gonna have to sit this one out. You go on and have fun." She raised her head towards her fellow dancers. She switched back to English. "You guys best keep out of trouble." When the other dancers rolled their eyes in jest, she only laughed louder. "No, but seriously. Have fun. I'll see you guys at rehearsal tomorrow."

"Don't wait up, bro." Mokuba winked and flashed his brother another one of his toothy grins; Seto almost rolled his eyes. Just as he was about to leave, however, the younger Kaiba stopped himself in his tracks. "Hey, wait - Anzu, how're you getting home?"

The dancer's eyes widened at the slightest. "Oh, I take the subway. It's not that long of a ride, really-"

"Seto, why don't you take her home?" Mokuba glanced at his brother, and he simpered when his brother blinked in confusion. "You can't leave a lady to ride the subway by herself at this hour!"_  
><em>

Seto gritted his teeth, but chose to keep quiet. _Is he planning something? What makes him think he can tell me what to do...at least without consulting me first?__  
><em>

Anzu's cheeks flushed a faint pink and she shook her head." H-hey, wait...Mokuba, it's okay-"

"Don't worry about it. My brother will take you home, no problem!" Mokuba chuckled and patted his brother on the back. "Won't you, nii-san?" When Seto responded with a grunt, he laughed again. "Well, there's your answer." He leapt in to give Anzu one last hug before returning to the other dancers. "It was nice seeing you again, Anzu. Hopefully we can hang out sometime soon!"

"You bet, Mokuba. Have fun." She waved goodbye, and he threw another smile her way before leaving.

The brothers locked eyes for a split second before they separated; Seto swore he saw mischief on his brother's face, and it made him want to wring his neck.

Once Mokuba and his new friends were out of sight, Anzu returned her attention to Seto, who was already making his way towards the car. "H-hey, you don't have to do this, you know."

"It's fine." He opened the door for her and gestured inside; she scrambled over. "You said it wasn't that long of a ride anyway." When she clambered inside the car he ducked in after her. He gracelessly cleared his throat as he buckled his seatbelt.

"T-thanks." She sat on the opposite side, her legs pushed together and her bouqet resting on her lap. Her head was slightly bent, with her eyes focused on her shoes. He wasn't sure if the pink on her cheeks was from the cold or embarrassment. "Uh, I don't live too far. Just a few blocks down the road."

"This is a pretty upscale area," Seto remarked as the driver started up the engine. "I didn't know corps de ballet made enough money to live around here."

She quickly turned to stare at him. "What's that supposed to mean?" When he shrugged, the pink in Anzu's cheeks darkened a little. "W-well, they don't. My parents have been helping with the living arrangements, so I kinda got lucky. They were against me coming here to study dance, but once I got accepted to the S.A.B. they couldn't say no." She exhaled and relaxed a little, leaning back against the leather seat and raising a hand to tangle her fingers in her auburn hair. "I'm surprised you even know what _corps de ballet_ means, Kaiba."

The young CEO scoffed and turned away from her. "Contrary to popular belief, I _am_ cultured."

He swear he heard her suppress a snort. "Could've fooled me." She muttered under her breath. He made the wise decision to pretend he didn't hear that.

They sat in uncomfortable silence for the next fifteen minutes. When the car finally turned up at her apartment, Seto exhaled in relief.

He reluctantly stepped out of the car and walked her to the entrance, where he watched her fumble with her keys. Just as she was about to enter the lobby, she turned to face him one last time. He blinked a few times, as if it would somehow get him to figure out what was she was going to say. Her expression was unreadable, which irritated him. He hated it when he was faced with something he couldn't predict.

"Er," Anzu's cheeks were a light shade of rose, "are you busy tomorrow afternoon, Kaiba?"

He cocked an eyebrow in confusion. He had meetings scheduled all morning, but the afternoon was pretty empty...which was rare for him. "I don't think so. Why?"

"I finish rehearsal at two-thirty, which means I have the rest of the day to myself, and...well...it's been six years. I figured it would be appropriate to catch up." She gave him a timid smile. "Plus, there's this cute little cafe around the area where we can grab a late lunch. I'm sure you'll like it, even if it isn't uppity and high class."

"What's _that_ supposed to mean?" He echoed her words from earlier, and she giggled at his response.

"Just giving you a taste of your own medicine, that's all. So, what do you say?"

He couldn't think of a logical explanation to this. Why would she want to spend her afternoon with him? There had to be a catch...maybe she was expecting something out of it. Yes...that had to be it. Maybe she needed help with expenses, or maybe she hoped he would know someone who could pull some strings for her. She had to have some sort of ulterior motive.

"Don't you have friends to hang out with?" Seto crossed his arms, trying to look intimidating, but her smile was still present. "I might have better things to do with my time."

"I do, but what's the harm in wanting to catch up with someone from back home? And you just said you weren't busy."

Well, she got him there. "Tch. Fine."

"Great!" Anzu tucked her bouquet into the crook of her arm, reached into her purse, and dug through it for a moment. She pulled out a crumpled gum wrapper and a pen, scribbled something quick, and handed it to him. "That's my number. You can call me if anything unexpected happens, but for now I'll be expecting you at the theatre tomorrow."

Seto stared at the wrapper in his hand before nodding. "Of course. I'll see you tomorrow, then."

"Mmhmm. Thanks for the ride, Kaiba. See you soon." She opened the door to her apartment lobby and disappeared inside before he had the chance to say goodnight.

He was weirded out by how civil they were being with each other. Things would have been a lot different if they had the same conversation six years ago. They used to be at odds with each other, constantly disagreeing...but now, he has plans to spend tomorrow afternoon with her.

Maybe Mokuba was right. Being stuck in a plane for thirteen hours must have cut off the blood to his brain somehow.

Seto Kaiba has officially lost it.


	4. Chapter 4

"Yer kiddin' me, right?"

"I'm not."

"No, seriously. Are ya for real?"

"Jonouchi," Anzu rolled her eyes and briefly turned away from her laptop to grab the hairbrush sitting on her dresser. "I told you - we're just going for a late lunch after I'm finished with rehearsal. It's not a big deal."

"Uh, like hell it isn't a big deal!" Jonouchi was confined to the tiny video chat window on Anzu's screen, but his voice was loud enough to be heard throughout her small apartment. "Have ya forgotten who this guy is - what he's _done_ t'ya and yer friends?"

"I'm well aware of our history," Anzu concentrated on her reflection in the mirror as she combed her hair, "but you have to remember that the last time we've _all_ seen Kaiba was nearly six years ago. A lot of things have happened since then. We're different people now."

"How are ya so sure?" The blond was scratching the side of his head with an index finger. "He's just as rotten as he was back then, trust me!"

"Have _you_ talked to him lately?" When Jonouchi failed to answer Anzu sighed. "Six years is a long time...and, well..." Her voice lowered, and so did her gaze. "He was the first person I've seen from Domino _in_ those six years. I guess I asked to see him today because nostalgia won me over. If I got to choose _who_ I wanted to bump into after my performance last night I definitely wouldn't have chosen him, but life isn't that predictable."

Jonouchi hesitated for a beat. "Yeah, I guess I see yer point." He let out a puff of air and tapped on his computer camera. "Well, if he gives ya any trouble, don't hesitate to give me or Yugi a call okay? I'm willin' to fly all the way over there to give him a thing or two." He snickered and gave her a thumbs up. "And don't ya worry - Yugi, me, and the rest of the gang are gonna be in New York in time for your peanut dancer show next year!"

"...You mean _The Nutcracker,_ Jonouchi?"

"Close enough." He gave her one last big grin. "Anyways, I'll let ya go. Yugi needs help closin' up the game shop. Don't work yerself too hard, Anzu. All of us back home are really proud of ya, y'know...chasin' yer dreams and all."

Her dear friend's words inflated a comforting warmth within her. "Thanks, that means a lot." Anzu set her brush back on the dresser and swivelled on her heel to face him. "I miss you guys so much. I'm excited to see you all again, even if it's still pretty far from now. A year's wait is better than nothing, I guess." She made her way over to her laptop and smiled. "I'll talk to you later, Jonouchi."

The call disconnected, and Anzu shut her laptop before grabbing her gym bag. Jonouchi and Yugi took over the game shop after high school, and they've been so busy with business that they haven't had the time to visit her in America. Everyone pursued their passions after graduating, which caused them to drift apart. Anzu missed her friends dearly, but here she was in America studying dance at one of the world's best ballet schools. It was a hard decision to make, but she had worked so hard to get to this point...

Adulthood was so confusing.

She checked her phone for the time and hurriedly made her way out of the apartment. She wasn't going to get that promotion to soloist if she was late.

* * *

><p>Seto straightened his tie as he anxiously stepped into the elevator. It had been a slow but productive morning at the American KaibaCorp headquarters. His anticipated meeting with Anzu Mazaki didn't help accelerate the time, either; it was all he could think about during all of the meetings he was forced to sit through.<p>

"Hey," Mokuba was waving a hand in front of his face, "are you alright? Everything okay in there?"

The elder Kaiba hastily shoved his brother's hand away. "Stop it."

Mokuba teasingly leaned in, grinning ear-to-ear. "You're nervous about your date, aren't you?"

"It's not a date." Seto hissed, though the exasperated expression on his face only tempted Mokuba to tease him further.

"Then what is it? You're meeting up with a girl and having lunch with her. How is that not a date?" The younger Kaiba laughed as he loosened his tie. The elevator doors slid open and the brothers stepped out together, making their way through the foyer and onto the busy streets of New York City. Their driver was already waiting outside with the car. "Have you ever gone on a date before? Come to think of it...I don't think so-"

"You're testing my patience, little brother." Seto crouched into the backseat of the car, and Mokuba followed.

"Why did you even ask her out in the first place if you don't see this as a date?" The younger of the two tossed his tie aside and fumbled with the top button of his dress shirt.

_"It's not a date,_ I didn't ask her _out, _and..." Seto fumbled on his words, and the uncomfortable heat began to creep into his cheeks. He could hear Mokuba snickering, and it only made his embarrassment worse. "she was the one who asked."

Mokuba nearly doubled over from laughing so hard. "Really? Well, it's about time you've gone out with a girl. There's a first time for everything. It was smart of you to let her ask first, actually." He made a reeling motion with his hands, as if he was using a fishing rod. "That's how you get 'em: you play hard to get, and you get _them_ to come to _you."_

The elder Kaiba kept his fists balled by his sides. If he relieved any ounce of restraint he was certain he would end up lunging over and strangling his brother to death. "I'm going to kill you."

Mokuba shrugged, completely immune to the threat. "What? I'm just sayin'."

The Lincoln Center seemed to loom over their car. Seto could feel a lump growing in his throat. Never in his twenty-two years has he been intimidated by anything...and suddenly he was anxious over a stupid lunch meeting with a friend of his biggest adversary. Mokuba probably had all the right in the universe to make fun of him for it.

The young CEO cleared his throat and adjusted his tie again when the car came to a full stop. He took a sharp intake of breath and sat perfectly still for a moment before finally opening the car door. When he stepped out, he glanced over his shoulder and saw with surprise that Mokuba stepped out as well.

"What? I didn't have the chance to really speak to her last night. I just wanted to say hi."

"...Whatever." Seto fished his phone out of his inside jacket pocket and glanced at the time. Two-thirty...her rehearsal must have just ended. He raised his head towards the David H. Koch Theater; his chest suddenly felt very tight.

Mokuba fell into step with him, and the both of them made their way towards the entrance. Anzu was already outside, and she wasn't dressed in anything spectacular this time: hoodie, jeans, and flats. A black gym bag was slung over her shoulder. Seto glanced at his black suit, blue shirt, and navy tie, feeling overdressed.

"Hey!" The younger Kaiba jogged towards her and wrapped her in another hug. Seto resisted the urge to roll his eyes. _Suck-up._

Anzu laughed and returned the hug. "Mokuba! Did you have fun last night?"

"Sure did. You've got a bunch of great dancers with you. You're not so bad yourself - it's great to see you all the way here pursuing your career! You must've worked real hard." _How did_ he_ know she wanted to be a dancer? _"Anyways, I gotta run. I just wanted to say hello." Mokuba gave his brother a wink and a cheerful pat on the shoulder; Seto responded with a stiff grunt. "Have fun, you two."

"Bye, Mokuba!" Anzu smiled, and Mokuba flashed her a grin before dashing back to the car. Once he was gone, she turned towards Seto and canted her head. "Looking at you makes me feel so underdressed. Do you ever have casual days?"

He gritted his teeth. "As much as I'd love to show up to work in pyjamas, I can't."

Her laughter rang in his eardrums. "It was a joke, Kaiba - and here I was, thinking six years was enough time for you to get a sense of humour." When she heard him growling, she only laughed louder. "Come on, I'm starving. The cafe's just a short walk from here."


	5. Chapter 5

Seto was thankful that the walk to the cafe was short, because they haven't said a word to each other the entire way there. They walked quietly beside each other, keeping a safe distance but not too far apart to make them look like strangers coincidentally walking the same pace. He could see her from the corner of his eye; her hands were clutching the strap of her gym bag, and her eyes were focused on her feet. Her body language read unsure, shy, and reluctant.

"Here we are." Anzu opened the door and let him inside first. He nodded in thanks and stepped in; the cafe was small, but quaint. There were a few people inside, quietly chatting amongst themselves. The floor was covered in worn wooden panels, and the walls were exposed bricks. Soft music lulled over their heads. "Cool, huh? I usually come here with coworkers after rehearsal."

"So why didn't you come with them this time?" He sat at the table farthest away from the window.

She raised an eyebrow as she took the seat across from him. "Because I'm with you, maybe?"

_Stupid question._ Seto awkwardly cleared his throat and reached for the menu; she must have noticed his embarrassment because she began to giggle. "Er, so...how long have you been here? In New York." He couldn't even formulate his words properly, and he hated himself for it. Seto Kaiba wasn't supposed to be intimidated by anything.

"I was accepted to The School of American Ballet right after graduation." Anzu explained as she flattened her own menu on the table, "Two months after high school was over I had my things packed and ready to go. I've been here ever since."

The waitress swung by, and both of them placed their orders: soup for her, a sandwich for him. "Has ballet always been something you've wanted to pursue?" There was genuine curiosity in his voice. Maybe it was because he always associated her with Yugi, and nothing more; a mere background character with no personality or backstory - then again, she always stuck out to him in comparison to the rest of Yugi's friends (even compared to Jonouchi). She _was_ the only female most of the time...and she had a sharp tongue. She wasn't afraid to call him out when he deserved it - and yes, he had managed to bring himself to admit his wrongdoings. His head wasn't as inflated as it used to be.

"Well, dancing in general has always been a passion of mine, but I only recently decided to professionally pursue ballet." Anzu's voice sounded distant, like she was recalling a memory. "I've been in ballet classes since I was really little, but as I got older I got into other forms and sort of left ballet on the back burner." She absentmindedly stirred her straw in her cup. "When graduation came closer I had to explore my options, and the S.A.B. was one of them. At first I wanted to get into Julliard, but when I got the acceptance letter for the S.A.B. I couldn't say no." She chuckled to herself. "I'm talking your ear off, Kaiba. You haven't said a single word - not even an insult."

His eyes slightly widened, and he moved to adjust his tie but stopped himself at the last minute. His fingers twitched anxiously. "I was simply listening to your story. It seemed Mokuba knew you wanted to be a dancer." Her story was interesting, but he wasn't going to admit it. His ego hasn't deflated _that_ much.

"I'm pretty sure I mentioned it to him before. Out of the both of you, he was always the easier brother to talk to." She paused to laugh when he huffed in irritation. "Well, it's true. I don't recall you saying anything to me that wasn't degrading."

The waitress had returned with their food. Seto quietly thanked her when she placed his plate before him. "That was a long time ago. I'm over all of that now."

"Are you? Like...with Duel Monsters and everything?"

"Of course not - my company more or less revolves around Duel Monsters. I meant in the sense of my relations with...your friends. Yugi, in particular." He took a bite of his sandwich. _Not bad._

Anzu broke her bread in half and dipped a portion of it in her soup, biting off a generous piece of it. She swallowed and reached for her drink. "You keep in touch with him? He didn't tell me that. Do you keep in contact with Jonouchi too, then? Whenever I talk to him he always makes it sound like he doesn't speak with you."

Yugi never told her they kept in contact...interesting. "Occasionally. He and that mongrel-" He noticed the change of expression on her face and he couldn't help but smirk, "-have been assisting in developing the game and creating new ways to play it. We're not friends or anything, but their expertise has been helpful." He paused for a moment, unable to help himself. "I mainly speak to Yugi. I don't have time for third-rankers."

"I thought you said you were _over_ that. You just called Jonouchi a mongrel and a third-ranker!"

Seto shrugged. "Once a mutt, always a mutt. He has good intentions, but he has to learn to think before he acts. He wouldn't have gotten so far in his dueling career if he didn't have Yugi breathing over his shoulder him all the time."

"I was beginning to wonder if you were saving your insults for later." Anzu took a few more bites of her food. "So are you and Yugi over the whole rivalry thing? I mean, if you're working together and stuff I'd imagine you don't butt heads as often as you used to."

"Titles no longer mean much." Seto replied, already halfway finished with his sandwich. He was hungrier than he thought. "Perfecting the game has become the utmost priority for the both of us, and with a common goal it was only natural we ended up working together. Shame he hasn't taken his innovations anywhere outside of Domino; he could have done a lot more if he and Jonouchi weren't so attached to that tiny game shop."

Anzu scoffed. He hadn't seen that indignant look in years. "They're not in it for the power and money, Kaiba."

"I'm not either."

"Could've fooled me."

The both of them rolled their eyes and returned their attention to their food, mentally cursing each other. Seto finished off the last of his sandwich and wiped his mouth with his napkin; she still had that sharp tongue, at least. Some things just never change.

"So," Anzu decided to break the silence, "Mokuba's grown up quite a bit."

"Don't even get me started on him." Seto's voice suddenly hardened, and she raised an eyebrow.

"What's there to expect? He's seventeen, Kaiba. Teenagers get themselves into trouble all the time. Look at what _we_ got into when we were his age." When he cast her a confused look she shrugged. "I read the newspaper and I have an internet connection at home. I know what he's been up to."

The young CEO groaned and ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. Out of all the things she could have possibly wanted to talk about, it had to be his brother. "Mokuba was fortunate to grow up without Gozaburo jumping down his throat and the weird Egyptian mumbo jumbo dictating his destiny."

"Unlike you, and how you're supposed to be doomed to a life dedicated to obsessing over three pieces of paper with shiny dragons on them." Anzu was grinning at this point, and her grin only widened when Seto's face grew slightly pink. "I'm just teasing you. Go on."

Seto cleared his throat. "His easy upbringing spoiled him. He grew up without any strict expectations or dire consequences hanging over his head...and as a result he lacks any motivation or ambition to do anything productive with his life." He crossed his arms and huffed. "Now that he's older he thinks it's smooth sailing from here. I can hardly keep any sort of control on him nowadays, and he never listens to me. He thinks he knows what he's doing. Tch."

"Sounds like your typical teenage mindset to me." Anzu shrugged and gulped down the rest of her drink. "Don't give up on him. I know it's a little difficult to see now, but he's going to appreciate you later on, when he grows out of this phase."

_"If_ he grows out of this phase."

"Well...you've grown out of yours, haven't you?"

Her words confused him. He couldn't resist adjusting his tie this time. "What are you talking about?"

"You just said earlier that you were over the animosity between you and Yugi. Titles and figuring out who's a better duelist don't matter to you anymore, right? That's a big step forward from where you used to be." Anzu's voice lowered slightly. "And...well, I can sort of tell you've changed just by the way we've been talking. You're...different, but I just don't know how to describe it. I want to say mature, but you've always been a lot more mature than me and the others in more ways than one - even if you were a power-hungry jerk." She smiled to herself. "We're actually having a conversation, Kaiba - a _real_ conversation. We're not hurling insults at each other. Don't you think that's something worth noting?"

His expression was thoughtful. "I suppose so."

The smile on her face was small, but genuine. "We're never the same person for very long, Kaiba. Give it time."

"I didn't need advice on how to raise my brother, but thanks...I guess." He reached into his jacket's inside pocket and grabbed his wallet. He tossed a few bills on the table and promptly stood up, raising an eyebrow when he noticed Anzu staring at the money. "What?"

"You put down way more than you owe - and that's including the tip."

He half-turned away from her. "Are you coming or not?"

"Er..." He could see her hesitating out of the corner of his eye; her hand was halfway into her gym bag.

He sighed. "Don't worry about it."

"Thanks..." She hastily rose from her chair and scurried to his side, and they left the cafe together. Once outside, Seto called his driver and requested to be picked up. He refused Anzu's protests, even turning his back to her so he could drown her out while speaking on his phone.

"You already drove me home once. You don't have to do it again." The dancer mumbled as she crawled into the car.

He shrugged and tried to make it look like he didn't care. "Mokuba wouldn't let me live it down if I let you take public transportation."

It was her turn to sigh. "Well, I guess you have a point there. Thanks again, Kaiba."

He kept his eyes trained on the scenery on the other side of the car's tinted window. "Don't mention it."

* * *

><p>As he expected, Mokuba hounded him the instant he stepped through the penthouse's front door.<p>

"Sooooo..." The younger Kaiba leaned in so close that Seto had to step back a bit. "How'd it go?"

The brunet rolled his eyes and politely pushed past his brother. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Don't play dumb with me, nii-san." Mokuba followed him into his home office. "Your date, stupid! How did it go?"

"For the last time, Mokuba, it wasn't a date." Seto rubbed his temples before collapsing on his leather chair. He booted up his laptop and began to check his email, trying to block out the younger Kaiba's presence.

"I'm not leaving until you tell me what happened." The younger of the two stubbornly crossed his arms and moved to sit on the edge of the computer desk. "C'mon, just tell me. Was it good? Bad? Did you ki-"

"We just talked about our careers." Seto hastily cut in, which elicited a smile from Mokuba. "She asked about you, I told her about our collaboration with Yugi and Jonouchi, and then I took her home. There, are you happy now?"

"Aw, that's boring." Mokuba's hands moved to the back of his head. "At least you brought her home. Did you pay for her meal?"

The young CEO pretended to be busy with his laptop for a moment. "...Yes, I did."

"Did you make plans to go out with her again?"

"No."

"And why not?!" Mokuba's voice raised unexpectedly, catching Seto off guard.

"Why would either of us make plans to see each other again? Even just running into her the other day was pure coincidence. If it weren't for you philandering with random women you find off the street I wouldn't have seen her!" He grumbled a few choice words under his breath before rumpling his hair. "It's your fault this happened in the first place."

Mokuba rolled his eyes. "Hey, my _philandering_ is actually doing you some good. You need to hang out with people for fun every once in awhile, y'know. It's called having a _social life._ It's called being a normal human being who interacts with other normal human beings." He let out a sharp puff of air. "You hang around with too many machines, bro. Sometimes I worry you're forgetting you're not one of them."

There was a heavy silence between the both of them. Seto continued to work on his laptop, seemingly forgetting his brother was still in the room. He heard Mokuba sigh one last time, followed by the shuffling of feet and the opening of a door.

"I'm heading out." His brother's voice was low. "I'll see you around."

Seto still didn't answer. Mokuba quietly shut the door behind him.


End file.
